Just Falling Slowly
by amoxxx
Summary: A longest yard/Knauer fan fic. The bored P.A of Warden Hazen finds herself in the middle of a warzone when a game of football turns into a battle between the guards and the cons. Can Gemma do whats morally right or what is expected?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: I do not own the rights to the movie the longest yard or to any characters from it

Foreword: this is my first fanfic in a long while so bear with me, hopefully it'll end with 5+ chapters, ill try and not be too lazy, feel free to message me any comments or where you would like changes etc, I love feedback, also this contains a few swear words :P

**Chapter One**

Gemma couldn't place what was aggravating her headache more, the crushing humidity that was sticking her shirt to her back or the god damn creaking of the overhead office fan. She glared at the metal contraption as it grinded away above her head while her temples throbbed. Placing her head into her hands she wished work could be over though she still had 5 long hours to go.

Her self pitying was interrupted by the sharp buzz of her intercom into which a voice barked "the warden needs a package signed for at the guards office Miss Whelan" Clicking the response button, Gemma gushed "yes Mr. Dandridge" with all the cheer she could muster. It was always best to keep the bosses on side cause in this place it was for safety's sake you stayed with the group.

"I'll be right back Lynette" Gemma smiled, getting to her feet, "alright honey" replied the secretary, not taking her eyes off the online photos of some half naked footballer players. Striding out of the office Gemma glanced out of the windows that lined the corridor wall. She watched the groundskeepers water the football green, it must be the only bit of green for miles she thought. The sky was a deep blue with not a cloud in sight and it was taking its toil on the inmates, there was little but no movement in the yard, most were taking shelter in the little or no shade.

"Good idea" murmured Gemma making her way down the metal stairs, smiling at one of the guards as she passed, who smiled back. her job still baffled her, she was the PA to the warden of Allensville prison, a man who already had a secretary and a media advisor, but as Warden Hazen was a cantankerous old fuck, the chance to smirk "my P.A will take care of it" was too sweet, so backed by Dandridge he recruited a personal assistant so between her and the secretary there was really no work to be done, so many hours were spent gossiping with Lynette or glaring at the ceiling fan.

Hazen had notions of running for governor so hopefully things would pick up, Gemma had a strict work ethic and so all these hours of sitting around doing nothing drove her insane.

Waiting to be buzzed through one of the numerous gates Gemma glanced up at the security camera, the perk of working in a prison, your watched 24/7 even when you're not an inmate. The place reminded her of a cattle market, all these gates and the never ending inspection. This inspection coming from the guards and the inmates. Being one of three women in the whole place and the only one under 60 Gemma was a point of interest for all the men, which quickly got old.

Passing two more guards she smiled a "afternoon" which was returned and she went down another flight of stairs, growing closer to the guards station. The heat was making her pencil skirt become her a second skin, not that it was loose to begin with but her legs were getting more attention that usual.

Finally reaching the station she knocked before entering, she knew better then taking liberties where the guards were concerned. The door was opened by Guard Englehart who smirked when he saw her, "well lookit what we have here" which Gemma ignored "there's a package for the warden?" Standing back for the doorway he beckoned for her to enter. The cool air from the air conditioner was a blessing, as with all area's the guards were frequently in it had a top of the line air conditioner, heaven forbid the poor dears would over heat. Following Englehart through the office to the holding area Gemma ignored the looks from the guards who were sitting at various monitors, she had perfected the "I don't give a shit" expression. Coming out of the doorway she spotted the poor Fed Ex guy, who was nervously standing by guard Dunham, who as per usual was glaring.

Gemma smiled at the poor guy as he handed over the clip board to be signed, his hands slightly shaking "great place you got here" "we are just fun and happy people" Gemma laughed back, taking the parcel. The guy looked nervously between Dunham and Englehart and made a quick exit.

"Poor guy" muttered Gemma to herself walking back through office, flanked by the two guards. "Might you be wanting an escort back" laughed Dunham as she reached the far door, "I think ill be fine" replied Gemma, painting a big false smile across her face and with that she left. Barely two steps away she heard Dunham bellow, "She wants me" which was answered with loud obnoxious laughter.

"Ass" thought Gemma to herself, walking back quickly with her head held high. Reaching the long corridor again she paused and looked out one of the windows, the greens men were still caring for the ground under the glaring sun. Looking down at what she was holding, the p.a's curiosity got the better of her and she gave the package a little shake. The rattle was a give away, it was a tape and she had a pretty good guess of what of. Hazen didn't like playing by the rules, when football was concerned anyway; she knew full well he had little spies film the training sessions of rival teams so he could get the inside scoop.

Walking towards the office she looked at the package and smirked, five years without a win and he was resorting this. Before she could even look up she walked straight into a guard coming around the corner, and the package went skidding across the floor. "Shit" she fumed bending to pick it up but her companion got there first. "I'm so sorry I should look where I'm going in future" she babbled, standing back up. "Maybe I shouldn't walk as fast" was the response.

Standing upright she found herself looking at Captain Knauer and she desperately tried not to blush. "I believe this is yours" he smiled, holding up the package, "thanks" she replied trying to hold his look. Taking the package off him her hand lightly touched his and her stomach did a little flip. Touching his Stetson and muttering "ma'am" he made his way down the corridor, leaving Gemma flushing with red cheeks as she rushed back to the office.

Passing Lynette who murmured "get there alright honey" from behind the screen, Gemma rapped loudly on Hazen's office door, "of course" she grinned, as the warden shouted enter. Once inside she placed the package quickly on the desk and left, the warden was shouting down the phone and now was not the time to get in his line of fire.

When she got back to her desk she kicked off her peep toes and fell into her chair, the annoying noise of the ceiling fan reaching her ears again. "Oh joy" she thought to herself, getting back to her typing, only 4 hours and 40minutes till going home time.


	2. Chapter 2

Ok I'm having minor issues with my pc, I've had to cut this chapter into two, due to my computer deciding it doesn't want to upload the whole file, rawr is all I can say, anyway this is the reason for the Chapter 2 part one title

A sincere thank you for the lovely reviews and messages, I seriously thought this was going to be lost to the depths of the fan fiction site :)

Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the longest yard or any characters from the movie, also the same goes for the fore mentioned songs; I do not own the rights to the songs, bands or any lyrics.

**Chapter Two: Part One**

Gemma stood in front of the mirror, cursing the fact she had nothing to wear, cursing the fact she had too many crappy clothes and cursing the fact she had only had 15 minutes before she had to leave the house. She was convinced the shoes made her calves look fat, or was it the skirt, maybe both.

Flinging herself G.I Jane style over the bed she blindly flung clothes out of her closet in the pursuit of a new suit, anything was better then what she was wearing. Shoes were flung behind her as she tried to find her cream peep toes, why did closets grow three times their size when time was of the essence?

With a triumphant "HA!" the shoes were found and her suit was ripped from its hanger and something that could only be described as a frenzy followed. In her new outfit Gemma dashed into the bathroom, just to check her makeup. Frowning she came to the conclusion she may be wearing too much and almost bordered drag queenesque, "screw it" she fumed and with determination closed the bathroom door.

Rushing around collecting folders and phones she realized she had mislaid her car keys, which meant five minutes of loud profanity and a bruised shin bone from colliding with the coffee table. A final check at the mirror in the hall and the PA was ready to roll, with a slight limp in her step (god damn coffee table)

Once on the road Gemma turned on the radio, settling into the seat she let down the windows. It was already getting quite warm and it was still early in the morning. Driving up the motorway she kept an eye out for the turn off for Allenville, she was forever missing it, which she claimed to be her "blonde moment" of the day. It is universally known that at some stage of the day a woman will do something quite ridiculous and bubble headed which we just pass off as a "blonde moment" whether we are blonde, brunette or red headed.

Gemma quite liked the long drive to work, being surrounded by people everyday she appreciated the quiet time in the car and used it to full advantage. Turning the radio up loud just as The Clash came on, she roared along to "i fought the law" which was appropriate for going to work. It was no wonder she was nearly hoarse by the time she got to the parking lot, thirty minutes of rocking it can do that to anyone's voice.

Remembering the turn off in time (for once) she looked around the dusty landscape as she drove along the dirt road "and people wonder why I don't wash my car" she thought, as dust flew up in the air. Gemma's little kick while driving to work was having a small bout of speeding, not like there would be deputies hiding along the road, there was no where to hide. Hitting 100 miles per hour her Honda civic roared into life, a perk of the job was the guards knew what seized cars were coming up in the police auction from their buddies at the sheriffs office and Englehart had been nice enough to mention it to her when her old Volvo had given up.

Englehart was quite nice in his own way she thought checking her mirror, when he wasn't flying into one of his rages. Gemma knew exactly who was taking "extra supplements" as Hazen liked to phrase it, and the damage done by the guards was endless, smashed doors, chairs, some broken limbs (the inmates) and the vending machines were always on the receiving end, new machines were constantly being brought into the prison as the dying and dead were wheeled out, which further angered the Warden as he had to pay for each damaged machine.

In the road ahead a speck appeared, so lifting her sunglasses onto her head Gemma squinted to see what vehicle it was. To be on the safe side she started slowing down and as soon as she recognized one of the prisons buses she pulled it in a bit to allow it to pass. As the bus grew near she couldn't make out who was driving but waved never the less, the gesture was returned and once she passed she picked up speed again.

The DJ on the radio started to mention the approaching football championship coming up between the prisons, which made Gemma cringe. Allenville had lost 5 years in a row, 5 long long long long years. Shameful really since Hazen was breaking regulations left right and centre, how the hell can you keep up a losing streak when you're already cheating?

Picking up speed again, Gemma slotted in a c.d into the car player, frankly hearing about football all day quickly wore thin, though she couldn't complain about seeing the guards running around in tight shorts, what woman in her right mind would complain! A little while later she reached the gates of the prison and slowed to a respectable 40 mph before driving around to the side entrance to staff parking.

Allenville was a jungle of steel and stone, with its watchtowers looming over everyone on the ground. An inmate had never escaped from the prison, between the snipers in the towers, the mounted guards and the security dogs the place was tighter then Fort Knox, which the Warden pointed out with pride. The place had suffered one small riot three years previous and the culprits had been thrown in segregation aka the hole ever since, though this was after they got a beat down in front of the rest of the inmates. The Warden promoted zero tolerance, a small scuffle could turn into a rebellion and he was not ready to put any of his staff in danger.

Gemma remembered Lynette telling her all the gory details of that day as she prepared to stop at the barrier, but she was waved through by one of the guards and went about looking for a space. Her poor car was one of the few non SUVs and as the guards insisted on parking between 2 parking spaces, space was becoming an issue. Gemma's reverse parking may have needed work but she could still park between two clear white lines, unlike some people.

Clambering out of the car (in a bit of an unlady like manner) she retrieved her bag from the backseat and locked the car. "frickers" she had left her id badge in the glove compartment, clambering again (in an even more unlady like manner) she was finally reading for work. Waiting to be buzzed in she could hear the familiar gruff voices on the other side of the door "oh joy" and the door buzzer sounded. Once inside she found Guard Papajohn and Garner who smiled a bit too much for her liking. Papajohn was the one to start the ball rolling

"Howdy there"

"Morning"

"How are you today?"

"Just great and yourself" (this was going to be a painfully drawn out conversation)

"Fine, mighty fine" it was at this point Gemma flicked her eyes up from the sign in book to find Papajohn had leaned forward with his arms on the counter and was slightly too close for comfort. If this was to be a battle of wills Gemma wasn't losing and went back to signing in with as much nonchalance as she could muster.

"That's just great" she replied breezily

"Yup" she could practically feel his breadth on her forehead. Placing the pen in the center of the book she adjusted the shoulder strap of her bag and made for the door to the far side.

"Bye guys" she smiled cheerfully, which was returned with a chorus of "bye" from the two at the counter and the two who were hidden in the office.

As the door closed behind her the laughter echoed but she was used to it, it was just another part of work which she shrugged off. Her friend Alex was always going off on her feminist rants when Gemma mentioned work, "its bullshit Gemma, bullshit!, sexual harassment in the workplace, I'd report, no wait I'd report then sue, think of the money"

The thing was she didn't want to sue; she didn't particularly care what the guards did. She didn't feel threatened or harassed, sure it was a major pain in the ass but this place was a pit of testosterone from morning to night, any touchy feely behavior would raise an eyebrow.

Going through the usual maze of gates and stairs she passed some random inmates sweeping the corridors, inmates were assigned stars to grade their level of aggression; those with one star were permitted more freedom and were given jobs around the prison. These were usually the older inmates most of which were very polite to the female staff and where mostly nice to talk to. Gemma greeted many with a cheery "morning" as she passed, which was returned.

Reaching the top of the final staircase she was met by one of the newer guards and of course Dunham, who chuckled to himself. Dunham was tedious, dealing with him was like peeling a sticky plaster off, you sure as hell didn't want to do it but it had to be done. "Hey guys" she smiled (it wasn't any wonder her jaw muscles were beginning to get sore) "hey there" replied Dunham, his eyes looking her up and down. Gemma kept up that smile as she past before disappearing down into the long corridor to the wardens office.

What people didn't get and this was mostly pointed at Alex, was prison in here was a constant theatrical performance; every one had a role to play. The guards were the over bearing protagonists, the inmates the rebellious under class and it didn't stop there. Gemma had slotted herself in the cute and harmless PA role; she was always sweet and smiling. Acting the bitch in a place like this ended up in trouble, if the guards took a dislike to her their attention in her safety would take a lazy approach and who knew where that could lead.

Lynette was a perfect example. She appeared the ditzy high maintenance though sugary sweet secretary of the warden, though none of the guards who have guessed she loved to read Wordworths and Dickens, she was unthreatening though sometimes bossy and the guards loved her like a second mother. Though she was constantly late for work because she took too long doing her hair (the plight of women everywhere, seriously we are rarely visited by the good hair fairy and when we are we usually don't have to leave the house).

Reaching her desk Gemma threw her bag onto the top of it and went into Hazen's office to tidy up before the warden came in, he was constantly having little beer drinking sessions with some of the guards and the place was left like a pig sty most evenings. Thankfully the place was clean apart from paperwork thrown here and there, which she gathered and filed. All the while she was aware of the camera in the corner of the room and she wondered who was at the monitor. Her mind drifted to Knaeur and she smiled to herself.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of high heels and Lynette appeared at the door way

"Morning honey"

"Hey there Lynette, how are you"

"Ok honey, went out to that new restaurant I was telling you about the other day"

"Oh that cute little Italian place"

"That's the one, I swear I ate enough for 5 people, George couldn't even stand up he ate that much pasta. and that Missy Swanson was in there of course, mutton dressed as lamb" and off Lynette went into her daily rant about the evil Missy Swanson, a woman who she had went to high school with and who her husband had briefly dated before he met Lynette. Gemma listened carefully, she did dearly love Lynette, the woman had always been so warm and kind to her since her first day.

Their chatting was interrupted by the sound of brisk footsteps which could only mean one person. The two women rushed behind their desks and started taking out things to be typed. The tall striding figure of Warden Hazen was soon walking past them with the bark of "good morning ladies" "morning warden" the two said in unison not talking their eyes from the documents. He reappeared a minute later.

"Gemma I need you to call down to the staff entrance and tell them I want Captain Knauer up here as soon as he comes in and then I want you to ring Judge Crawford's office and confirm he's coming to the cookout on Saturday"

"Yes sir"

"And Lynette I need those memos drawn up for the committee meeting on the 13th"

"Yes sir" and with that he disappeared in his office and shut the door.

"Papajohns down there" Lynette commented.

"Oh don't I know"

The look of knowing from Lynette said it all and she tutted as Gemma lifted the phone and held down the button for the front side entrance. The connection buzzed twice before Papajohns voice came over the receiver "Staff side entrance"

"Hey there, the warden wants Captain Knauer sent to his office as soon as he comes in"

"Sure thing darling" at this point Gemma looked over to Lynette to roll her eyes, which caused Lynette to go into another round of tutting. If tutting was a sport, Lynette was gold medal standard.

"Thank you" and with that Gemma hung up the phone quickly and started skimming through the diary for Judge Crawford's number.

As Lynette typed and Gemma confirmed the judge's presence on Saturday, she found herself doodling over her day planner as the judge droned on about the prison football team. Gemma began to get lost into her own reverie and the flowers on the page snaked up the printed lines, erupting into large blossoms at the top corners, she had always been gifted in drawing, which few people knew about. Though her art teacher said she lacked emotion when painting i.e. her art teacher was what can only be classed as a nutter and no one listened to her anyway.

She probably would have kept scribbling and ignoring the judge if a box of staples hadn't skidded across the desk in front of her. "Well I'm sure we will win the championship this year sir, ill tell the warden you and your wife will be there on Saturday, thank you" and the phone was put back on its base. "My aims getting worse, I was aiming for your head" chuckled Lynette, to which Gemma gave a mock glare.

Going about the rest of their duties they were passed by Dandridge who went into the warden's office, clad in his usual white suit. "Ladies"

"Mr. Dandridge"

For some reason when she saw the man, Gemma immediately said "oh I do declare!" in her head, which usually sent her into a fit of giggles, which was contracted by Lynette, thus making Mr. Dandridge a very paranoid man.

Randomly the over head fan kicked into life and that all too familiar grinding noise started, Gemma merely sighed, she was in too much of a good mood for it to be spoiled by a stupid machine. She began typing up new training schedule the Warden had devised (probably based from the tape he had received a few days previous) so all she had to do was print it and make sure all the guards got it, which meant a trip to the locker room, which scared her slightly. The mere thought of it reminded her of the song welcome to the jungle.

Quite pleased with herself and her fabulous typing skills she printed a copy and got up to take it to the copy room, the sound of her heels echoed in the empty corridor but the sound of approaching footsteps made her straighten up, and just outside the copy room she was passed by Captain Knauer, who smiled and nodded with a cool "ma'am", Gemma smiled and replied (with what she hoped) was a breezy "hey"

With her hand on the door handle she took a cheeky look back at him as he walked away. She loved his walk, it had a subtle strut, though it was natural strut and as she turned the door handle she took an even cheekier look at his butt and then let herself into the copy room with a loud theatrical sigh.

Part 2 will be uploaded later today, bear with me:p


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry this took so long, I rewrote the end part like twice, I think I prefer this one : ) and thank you for all the lovely comments

Chapter two: part two

After printing off what appeared to be a small rainforest worth of paper, Gemma strode on down to the guards locker room, which was situated in the lower level of the prison. Thankfully practice was not due to commence for another few hours so the place was completely deserted. To be on the safe side she still snuck in with enough stealth that a ninja would have been proud of, placing the schedules in each locker while periodically checking around. She laughed at her self for being so ridiculous but it still didn't stop her from tip toeing around the lockers.

Mission completed she was about to make her exit when Coach Emery appeared from the back office, thus ruining her ninja credibility. She was then contained for the following half an hour while the coach discussed defensive tactics (what ever those are, he may have well been speaking polish).

Like any good P.A Gemma was an ace at smiling and nodding and had mastered the technique of drifting off without her eyes glazing over so she managed to look fully concentrated though she was off in la la land. This time she was off considering buying a new handbag she had seen three days previous, sure she didn't really need it but she still wanted it. And then again her mind drifted to Knauer, sure she wanted him but she wanted to keep him....

"And that's why the backs are doing so badly"

Reality was like a slap in the face but unfazed she replied "wow, I've never really understood it till now, the plays were just confusing me". Emery nodded with gusto and before he could launch into another football marathon he was interrupted by the PA system. "Could Gemma Whelan please report to the infirmary"

"Oh I must get myself up there, thanks for all the insight coach, you've really shed a light on the whole football world for me"

"No problem at all ma'am" and he escorted her out.

Rushing to the infirmary she wondered what the emergency was but it was probably paperwork, oh the excitement. And she was right; it was all the updated physical assessment of all the guards on the football team.

"The warden wants these brought to his office" smiled Nurse Garrett, with a certain amount of sympathy.

"Are you serious" watched Gemma, hoping she might say no.

The mountain of papers looked to weigh about the same as a small baby elephant; no way was she going to make it back to the office in one piece.

"fraid not, he wants them ALL up there now"

Gemma whimpered in response. Sure she went to the gym but she was in no way a weight lifter, this would require some serious upper body strength, which she seriously lacked.

"Maybe one of the guards could help" offered the nurse, as Gemma lifted the stack into her arms. Ideas were already forming in her head, playing the damsel in distress would most likely work; it was about time she cashed in all those sugary sweet smiles.

"Be careful now"  
"I'll try"

Shuffling out of the infirmary Gemma scouted about for any guards that were not on watch duty. They were none about of course.

"Boogers" huffed the pa as she carefully walked up the iron steps.

"This is a complete load of arse"

Tiny needle like stabs were already pricking at her arms but she sure as hell wasn't dropping them.

Passing the chaplaincy offices she spied two guards walking towards her.

"Bingo" she grinned.

Picking up speed she made her made her way in their direction, with the full intention of hitting off Guard Mason with her elbow; sure they had to help her, her being a poor defenseless little woman. Well that's what she was hoping on anyway.

Her plan in place and the collision on course it all fell to pieces when the PA announced she was to return to the infirmary.

"Oh for the love of god" she growled which was overheard.

"You ok there" asked Mason, stopping in front of her with his companion. Alex would be furious but Gemma was going to pull the silly little assistant routine and she hoped it was going to have a good success rate.

"You couldn't be a complete gent and run these up to the Wardens office, I know it's a cheeky thing to ask but I'm such a big strong man such as yourself would get them there quicker then little me" she finished with a toothy smile.

It worked "sure, anything for a lady" and he took the stack with little effort.

"You're so sweet; thank you so so so much" another toothy smile.

Gemma's dad was Irish and she had inherited his natural charm, which was usually reliable in circumstances that she needed to talk herself out of, well most of the time anyway.

Now off the hook and with the two guards walking away up the corridor Gemma practically skipped back to the infirmary, she was a true believer skipping was an under rated gait, though she only did it in the privacy of her own home.

Once back in the medical office she was received by Nurse Garrett.

"You called"

"Where'd your paper mountain disappear to" a shy smile.

"You got balls, ill give you that"

"Ha, ill take that as a compliment, so what's the big emergency. Let me guess I have to drag a filing cabinet up to Hazen?"

"Nothing as drastic, one minute folder of x-rays"

"Phew, gimme"

"Doctor Harris has them, but he's in his office having a meeting. Fancy a coffee while we wait?"

"I couldn't refuse if I wanted to"

So for the next glorious twenty minutes Gemma sat on her behind sipping coffee with Emily (Nurse Garrett) and waited for the doctor to emerge from his office. Gemma rarely got to socialize with the other staff members since she was mostly confined to her desk or following Hazen around the football pitch, so she was glad for the chance to get to know some of the medical staff and she found Nurse Garrett to be one of the admirable people on Allenville ground.

Checking the clock she realized she had been sitting here for almost forty odd minutes and she began to get worried that the warden would be getting impatient, you did not want to be on the end of Hazen's pissy rants but she knew if he was annoyed it would have been announced over the system by now.

Finally the doctor's office door creaked open and Doctor Harris appeared with the fore mentioned file in hand." I believe this is yours" he drawled.

"Thanks Doc" Gemma replied with sincere gratitude.

" you may want to get yourself back up to that desk of yours, Allenville's new superstar is supposed to be getting processed sometime soon"

Gemma merely raised an eyebrow in response; this was just going to be another Z-Lister again. Lynette was always doing this to her and it was a constant let down.

"Some former football MVP, its all been hush hush though. He is due now apparently"

This bugged her to no end, being privy to all prison gossip was a given, how the hell had she missed this little nugget.

Gemma was not impressed but responded thusly "well ill get myself up there and find out all the gory details, thanks doc, Emily" who was now on her fifth cup of coffee.

It was getting to inch toward the afternoon and it was at this time the allowed inmates were put out to the exercise yard, meaning moving around the prison was a nightmare as it took longer to move through the sections with all the heightened security.

As she rushed along Gemma could detect a somewhat hushed silence coming from the yard which was normally a loud and busy area. The hushed silence made her listen more carefully but as no alarms rang out she knew it wasn't anything serious.

"Weird" she muttered.

She was furthered annoyed when she got stuck in one of the double gates for a ridiculous amount of time when the second gate decided it wasn't going to open. Grumbling to herself about being delayed she barely noticed Dunham pass her when she reached the copy room. Paper work in hand he was laughing to himself, the sort of laugh that should have concerned her.

Turning the corner while shaking her head over Dunham's strange behavior she walked right into a situation she would have normally avoided. In the long corridor Captain Knauer was positioned squatting in front of a collapsed inmate in a white jump suit that advertised he was new. The inmate was gasping for air and unable to stand due to his hands being handcuffed so he was powerless to do anything as Knauer raised his head with his night stick.

Gemma didn't utter a word and stepped back behind the corner and hoped she had not been seen. She considered going back to the copy room to wait it out there but she knew Hazen was probably going to be pissed enough of her amount of time being away so she stayed put.

"Cause the warden doesn't run this prison, I do, understand?" snarled Knauer.

"Not entirely"

The sound of the stick hitting the torso made Gemma flinch and the inmates gasps made her want to put her fingers in her ears but she stared at a nearby filing cabinet instead, because she couldn't think of anything else to do.

Her patience was rewarded with Knauer barking "get up" and the sound of shuffling disappeared.

Gemma let out a long breadth; she had not even noticed she had been holding it. Thankful it was all over she straightened out her shirt and fixed her hair. Gripping the folder to her chest she continued to the Wardens office, somewhat still rattled.

She was greeted by Lynette but watched by one of the guards.

"You ok honey" asked the secretary, her face full of concern,

"You're looking a bit pale"

"Oh it's the heat" laughed Gemma.

"It's like a sauna in that infirmary"

Satisfied Lynette went back to her work but Garner didn't look as convinced, his eyes searched her face though his expression didn't change.

Sighing loudly Gemma picked up the all important folder which she had thrown on her desk.

"I'd forget my head if it wasn't screwed on"

"Two peas in a pod you and I" smiled Lynette as the PA knocked sharply.

"Yes!" barked Hazen. Gemma cautiously poked her head in first, waving the folder like a symbolic white flag "the folder you wanted sir"

"Oh yes, leave it on my desk please"

You could practically cut the tension with a knife and Gemma wanted out of the room and as quickly as possible.

Hazen turned his back to stare at the plaques on the wall as she walked to his desk but three pairs of eyes watched her every step, one which she could feel burning into her back. Setting the folder down she walked back ignoring all eye contact, just staring at the door. Passing Knauer she got the feeling he was about to say something so she made the mistake of looking at him. He however maintained the silence and his eyes seemed full of knowing.

"Shit he did see me" she thought closing the door.

Taking a seat at her desk she checked the Wardens emails but her concentration was not up to par. The stupid situation in the corridor was going to be a pain in the ass, if the prisoner reported Knauer and called Gemma as a witness she was either going have to lie and say nothing happened, or worse tell the truth and she may as well quit now.

She could practically feel the anger building up and it was completely focused at Knauer. She hated lying and she was now going to have to and it would all be a big awkward mess.

As the Wardens door opened and the prisoner in the white jumper suit was pushed out she stared at the computer screen, it was a vain attempt at pretending she was too busy to talk to Knauer. How ever the captain remained in the office while Garner shoved the inmate down against the bench that was pushed against the wall.

Lynette was immediately striking up a conversation with the prisoner but Gemma was just not paying any attention due to her silent seething. The only thing that registered was the warden shouting "well get him motivated damn it" which was followed by Knauer exiting the office door.

Gemma flicked her eyes up just as he threw a look in her direction but still nothing was said, the silence was interrupted by the inmate "we all good?" as he was shoved back down the long corridor, "yeah, we're real tight" growled Knauer.

As the three men disappeared out the door way Lynette and Gemma watched the shadows on the far wall, Knauer's raised arm, accompanied with the night stick was raised high before it came down repeatedly. Lynette tutted again before getting to her feet.

"Nasty business" she muttered, walking to the doorway to close the inner door shut. The yells of the prisoner were shut out for the moment and the women went back to their work, not discussing the events outside the door.

**********************

Gemma had successfully avoided running into Knauer for the rest of the day as she did not have to leave her desk once, which she was hugely grateful for. It was not till the end of work she was aware she may run into him, it was not like she was going to be able to sneak out with out being noticed. Gathering her things and some files for typing at home, she filed the rest of the paper work and checked the warden's office quickly to see was it to be cleaned.

The warden had left with Dandridge about an hour earlier for a charity event, leaving Lynette and Gemma to man the fort. The office was however spotless so she waited on Lynette to finish up before the two women walked down to the exit.

Thinking she was home free she said her goodbyes to Lynette once they were in the car park and made her way to her car. The temperature outside took a dip and the cool evening breeze was welcomed. Throwing her things in the back of the car she was about to get into the car when a presence behind her turned her head.

And of course it was Knauer.

"Evening"

"Hey" She felt very awkward and it was showing. He tried to put her at easy with friendly banter but they both knew why he was here.

"Doing anything exciting tomorrow for your day off?"

"Haven't decided anything yet"

"Listen eh, I want to talk to you about what happened earlier" Gemma remained silent while he continued.

"I'm sorry you had to walk into the middle of that but the prisoner was getting out of hand and had to be restrained, you know how Hazen loves his zero tolerance policy"

Gemma still remained silent.

"So I just wanted to clear it up with you, you know the lies the inmates make up most of time"

To this Gemma responded with "you don't have to justify yourself to me Captain"

This threw him slightly, he was unsure of her tone.

And what she followed with surprised even her.

"Frankly I don't even know why you think I would care about what you get involved in, its your business" and the minute she said it she wished she had kept her mouth shut.

Knauers first response was the clenching of his jaw as he hooked his thumbs into his belt. His tone however was the give away.

"Glad we got it cleared up" it dripped with spite which was returned.

"Me too, goodnight"

"Night"

He then turned on his heel and walked away, leaving Gemma fuming at her car. Why did she say that, why! Once inside her car she felt like smacking her head of the steering wheel but just turned the ignition key instead. Driving out of the car park and on to the open road she gripped the steering wheel till her knuckles went white.

Trying to ignore the burning sensation in her chest she tried to focus on the road but the over whelming feeling began to choke her and she tried in vain to stop the tears. She felt the warm drops trickle their way down her cheeks and in the end she gave up and stopped the car. She spent the next few minutes sobbing her lungs up and by the end she felt about ten pounds lighter. She had not cried like this since her father had died when she was 17, not when Mark had cheated on her three times, not when she had walked out on his sleazy self two years previous and not when she packed up and left Dublin behind to follow her mother to the states.

Wiping away the remaining tears she let out a long and relieved sigh. It was as if she had shut the book finally on the heartbreak of those past years, she had only made herself suffer from holding it in for so long. She was annoyed for making herself believe that Knauer was a knight in shining armor and her rage towards him was misdirected. She was annoyed she had made him out to be Mr. Perfect, in all honesty what guy was.

Starting the engine again she pulled out onto the road with a bit more clarity. She felt like kicking herself for snapping at him in the car park, she would have to do some ground control when she came back to work, if it wasn't too late.


End file.
